


Come in from the Wilderness

by shinealightonme



Series: Shelter from the Storm [1]
Category: Criminal Minds
Genre: Episode Related, M/M, Pre-Slash
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2008-11-29
Updated: 2008-11-29
Packaged: 2017-10-03 19:31:48
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,664
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/21469
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/shinealightonme/pseuds/shinealightonme
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Morgan and Reid have a conversation at the hospital.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Come in from the Wilderness

**Author's Note:**

> Written for the November 08 "Thank you" challenge at Morgan/Reid community. Tag fic to "Memoriam." Originally posted [on LJ](http://shinealightonme.livejournal.com/7118.html).

"Godfather, huh?"

Morgan was glad he'd stopped in the hospital gift shop to buy something for JJ; otherwise he wouldn't have spotted Reid, standing outside the coffee shop and frowning absentmindedly at the cup in his hand. He didn't seem to notice Morgan's presence, even when the other agent was right in front of him, and he jumped slightly at being addressed.

"You heard about that?" Reid asked, a wide grin spreading across his face at the memory of holding Henry.

"You bet I heard about it. Garcia called me so excited that she could hardly talk, which is a first."

"Yeah, I know the feeling," and Morgan was suddenly reminded how 'joy' was a good look for Reid. It felt like years since he'd looked so carefree – Morgan couldn't quite believe it had only been a few days since they'd flown to Vegas. "It's overwhelming, to say the least. When she told me they wanted me to be the godfather it took me a moment to understand what she was saying. I couldn't really believe it at first."

"And now?"

Reid raised an eyebrow and nodded slowly. "Yeah, I'm…still working on that."

Now it was Morgan's turn to grin, deviously. "Makes you wonder though, doesn't it?"

"What do you mean?" Reid picked the strangest moments to be completely oblivious.

"How things could have turned out if Will hadn't come along." Reid still looked mystified, sipping his coffee innocently. "JJ obviously thinks that you're the one that got away."

Reid choked. "_What_?"

"Come on, man, she wants you to help her raise her kid. That's not exactly subtle." Morgan knew that the offer had been made and accepted platonically, but the opportunity was just too good to pass up.

Reid recovered enough to sputter an objection. "We had one date! Years ago! That didn't even go well! No. Just – no." There was a hint of laughter in his denial, though.

"If you say so." Morgan winked at him, enjoying the blush on Reid's cheeks.

"I do say so!" The squeak in his voice was slightly mortifying. "Besides, do you really think you should say things like that – you know – with Will around?" Reid looked behind him quickly.

"Relax, man. Will's not going to fight you for trying to steal his woman, especially since everyone knows I'm just joking."

"Still, you don't want to give him the wrong idea."

Morgan held up a hand in mock surrender. "All right, all right, that ship has sailed, and I'm dropping the subject."

"Thank you."

"But I swear, if she names her next kid 'Spencer…' "

"Do you want me to hurt you?"

"Whoa, pretty boy's got a temper."

" 'Pretty boy' is tired and cranky. You're lucky I don't have my gun with me," Reid muttered. The effect was somewhat dampened by the fact that he was still smiling.

"Remind me again of why everyone thinks you're so nice?"

"It's a clever ruse," Reid declared. "Don't tell anyone. I've got a bet with myself that I can keep them all fooled for at least another year."

"Don't worry about me, JJ's the one you need to keep fooled. Hate to see what she'd do to someone who messed with her kid."

Morgan was mildly disappointed but not at all surprised when Reid decided to respond to that comment seriously. "I, ah, didn't want – I'm not good with kids. I honestly never thought it would be an issue, but now…I'm a little worried. I mean, a godson? That's a pretty big responsibility, and I really want to get it right."

"Don't sweat it, pretty boy, you'll be great. Spoil the kid on his birthday, help him with his homework, do magic tricks for him and his friends…you should probably leave the games of catch to Will, though."

"Let's just hope he doesn't succumb to the Reid Effect."

"I'm pretty sure there's exceptions for family."

Apparently that was the wrong thing to say. Reid's smile slipped, loosing its easy radiance, and Morgan hated that even now, on what should have been a festive, happy occasion, Reid wasn't allowed peace. "I wouldn't know."

Morgan sighed. "Look, if you want to talk about it…"

Reid's expression had become utterly grim. "What's there to talk about?"

"This case was hard on you, man." Sometimes, Morgan thought, talking with Reid was like dealing with Clooney on a bad day; proceed with caution, talk softly, no sudden movements.

Reid closed his eyes with a sigh. "I know, I know, I lost objectivity."

It was infuriating and so typical, the way Reid could completely miss the point like that. It was also infuriating having his own words thrown back at him, especially since they weren't being used against _Morgan_. "Reid, _no one_ could be in that position and stay objective."

He seemed too lost in his thoughts to have actually heard Morgan. "I could have just dropped it. I could have walked away but if I did…there always would have been that question in the back of my head, that doubt. I would have spent the rest of my life wondering if my father was a murderer."

"Reid, I get it. You don't have to explain yourself to me."

"Do you think I did the right thing?" Reid asked suddenly, staring intently at Morgan's left shoulder – as close to making eye contact as he could get at the moment.

Morgan swore internally. He _really_ didn't want to answer that, and he didn't think Reid would let him off the hook. "It's not my call."

Reid's jaw clenched, and the hand that wasn't holding the forgotten coffee cup reached across his body to grab his other arm. He looked tight enough to snap in half. "Do you think I did the right thing?" he repeated slowly, the strained quality of his voice making Morgan take a step towards him; close enough to offer physical comfort without forcing it.

"I think you had a right to know the truth."

Reid snorted. "That's a 'no.' "

"I think you did the right thing."

"And why don't you sound like you believe that?"

Morgan paused to choose his words carefully, because Reid deserved honesty just as much as help, and he was afraid he could do serious damage by offering one and not the other. "Reid, maybe I would have done things differently, but that doesn't mean that I was right and you were wrong. We don't know how things could have turned out if you'd done something else. That doesn't matter. What matters is that I will support you, no matter what decisions you make."

Reid still wouldn't look at him, and hugged himself tighter. "You don't mean that," he said hoarsely.

"I do," Morgan responded without hesitation, more sure of that than he'd been of anything in his life.

"What if I screw up?" he whispered.

"Then I'll tell you you're screwing up, and I'll do my best to stop you from getting yourself hurt. But I'm not going to think any less of you, and I'm sure as hell not going to give up on you."

Reid finally looked him in the eyes. "How can you have that much faith in me?"

"Because I know you, Reid. You've earned it."

"I'm not sure I agree with that, but I guess, if you've got my back…I don't need to worry so much." The twisted, hopeful expression on Reid's face was an improvement from the wretched look he'd had before, but Morgan still felt pained at seeing it.

"Let's go, kid," he said, throwing an arm around Reid's shoulders. "I wanna see your godson."

Reid nodded, taking another sip of coffee for distraction. When Morgan tried to steer him toward JJ's room, though, he stayed firmly routed in place.

"You coming?" Morgan said, his tone suggesting that Reid wouldn't have much of a say in the matter.

Reid shook his head. "Yes." He frowned and clarified. "Not yet."

"You need a minute?" Morgan asked. He didn't like the idea, but it was understandable.

"No, I just thought," Reid cleared his throat and drank more coffee. "I, ah, I didn't say thank you."

"For what?"

"For everything?" Reid laughed nervously, pushing his hair back behind his ear. "For this. For staying in Vegas when I tried to get rid of you, for, for being there – when my dad…" He paused, the memory still too raw to give voice to, and shook his head. If things hadn't been so serious, Morgan would have been amused at the fact that his hair slipped back across his face with that gesture.

"When I had those dreams," Reid tried again, "You believed that there could be some significance to them. You found out about Riley Jenkins."

It seemed that Reid was determined to carry a debt of gratitude on top of everything else, and Morgan had to protest. "I just did a little research."

"Morgan. I felt like I was losing it, and you didn't think I was crazy."

Morgan held Reid's gaze for a few moments, hating his inability to find the words he needed. He swore that he would find something that would help ease Reid's burden, but until then thought that they could both benefit from a change of topic. He grinned wickedly. "My experience is, you're usually right…except when you're talking about evil twins."

Reid looked a bit thrown by the transition. He took a moment to catch up, then insisted, "Oh, come on, it was possible!"

"Sure, Reid. You keep telling yourself that."

"An identical twin would _not_ be the weirdest thing we've seen." He sighed. "I'm never going to live that down, am I?"

"No," Morgan laughed. "Come on, you good?"

"Yeah, I think so." Reid reached up to clasp Morgan's hand lightly and a faint smile flickered across his face again. It was a start, at least, and Morgan wasn't going to stop until he'd found a way to make Reid happy again.


End file.
